Ghost Triplets
by crazymultifandomgirl
Summary: What if Draco Malfoy wasn't actually Lucius' son, but rather a son of Hades? Not only that, but what if he was so powerful that all of the Olympians want him dead? Rated T for descriptions of abuse and beeped-out curse words
1. Chapter 1

Prologue: Hogwarts Train (Year One)

A tall, gangly teen boy dressed in Ravenclaw robes ducked frantically in and out of various compartments. He was obviously searching for someone or something; a worried expression marked his countenance and quiet mutterings attested to his growing concern. Finally, toward the end of the train he located a familiar face.

"Kaden!" he cried.

"Kody," returned the blonde boy quietly. Unlike his Ravenclaw counterpart, Kaden appeared calm and relaxed. Only a mischievous grin marked him-for the moment-as the Slytherin he was.

"Kaden, have you seen our sister?"

"Am I my sister's keeper?" Kaden retorted. The first-year boys behind him burst into laughter. Kody ignored them.

"Kaden, I'm truly concerned. Its Rachel's first year and-"

"Out of my way, Halfblood!" a sharp voice commanded, and equally sharp little elbows smacked Kody's stomach when he failed to move. A blonde first-year, newly-bedecked in Hogwarts robes, shoved his way into the cabin, followed by two other larger boys. The effect was that this boy appeared to be the leader, while the other two were apathetic followers. Judging from their empty expressions, Kody assumed their appearance was fairly accurate.

Kaden grinned at the younger boy fondly. "Finally figure out how to wear robes properly, Malfoy?"

"Shut it, Kaligras."

Kaden, however, seemed to have no intentions of following the younger boy's orders. "Or what?" he challenged.

"My father will hear about this!"

Kaden's grin grew larger and more taunting until he resembled a shark. "Your father doesn't scare me." A loud throat clearing from the compartment door drew the boy's attention back to Kody, standing awkwardly in the doorway.

"What do you want, Blood Traitor?" Malfoy queried.

Kody ignored him, staring only at Kaden. "You never did answer the question," he responded, as though it was Kaden who had addressed him.

Kaden sighed and then said, "I haven't seen Rachel. I'm sure she's fine though, Kody. Don't worry so much."

"Worry will make your face as ugly as your blood," Malfoy sneered.

Kody glanced at him impassively for a moment before addressing Kaden again. "I will continue searching the train. Thank you for your help." To his credit, only a bit of sarcasm slipped into his voice with the last statement. He turned to leave the compartment but ran into something human.

It was a first-year girl who bounced enthusiastically into the compartment. "Hullo, Kaden! Hullo, Kody! You'll never believe what I've found!" She didn't give them a chance to respond before barreling on. "Look, I've found a toad!" She produced a toad from one of the many folds of her Hogwarts uniform and thrust it forward eagerly. A girl in the compartment shrieked and promptly fainted, while the boys following Malfoy looked ill.

"Rachel, where did you find this toad?" Kody inquired.

"On the floor." Rachel's expression said it should have been obvious, especially to someone as intelligent as her brother.

"I believe this particular toad belongs to someone else."

As if summoned by Kody, a timid male voice said, "Excuse me, have you seen a toad anywhere?"

Rachel spun and held the toad out in her palm. "Is this is?"

"Trevor!" the boy exclaimed happily. "I've been looking all over for you!"

"He's a lovely toad," Rachel told the boy. "Sat quite still in all the time that I was holding him. What's your name?"

"Neville Longbottom."

"Oi! What is this, group meeting in our compartment?" Malfoy commented angrily. "Fattie, you have your toad, now leave. And you, Halfblood" here he spared a glance at Kody, "take your sister and get out now."

Neville turned to leave, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. He glanced in confusion at Rachel, but she wasn't looking at him. Rather, she had locked eyes with Draco. "Well, you're certainly an arrogant prat," she stated. "Who died and left you in charge of this compartment?"

"Muggleborn!" At Rachel's sharp intake of breath, Malfoy smirked victoriously. "Were you believing you could claim to be a Pureblood and nobody would know? Kaden told us about you-his muggleborn sister who is a disgrace to his family." Rachel's jaw tightened as Malfoy continued. "At least you're not as bad as Kody. Talk about a disgrace; the adopted Halfblood who believes he can sully our race with his unfaithfulness."

Neville had a brief moment to realize that the hand restraining him was gone before a loud crack echoed through the compartment. Everyone's mouth gaped open in shock as Draco howled and dropped to the ground screaming "My nose!"

Rachel yanked him to his feet and slammed him against a wall. She had pulled a knife from her robes and rested the blade against Malfoy's throat. However, when she spoke her words were surprisingly calm. "Do not ever insult my brother like that again."

Malfoy gargled some imperceptible words. Fear had rendered him incapable of speech for the moment, and it didn't help that his nose was broken and gushing blood into his mouth. He turned his head to spit blood and Rachel applied more pressure to her dagger, drawing a thin ribbon across his pure white skin.

"Rachel, stop," Kody ordered.

Rachel stared at her brother with fire in her eyes. "I should cut out his tongue for what he's said."

"Let him go, Rachel. He's not worth it."

Rachel abruptly dropped Draco-he slumped weakly to the ground-and spun on her heel and stalked out of the cabin. Neville followed in her wake. Kaden pulled Draco up and repaired his broken nose.

"Kaden, a word, please."

Kaden left his friends and followed Kody down an empty corridor. After checking to be sure they were along, Kody said, "What do you think?"

"It went better than expected, overall."

"She broke his nose and nearly cut out his tongue!"

"Yes, well, that's to be expected. Remember whose child she is."

"Hades commissioned us to protect his daughter and the Malfoy boy. Allowing one to break the other's nose is not a part of that!"

"No, we were commissioned because he knew we are strong enough to protect them both. As a Ghost Twin a lot of people-and gods for that matter-want her dead. You're a child of Athena and Zeus, and I'm a child of Aphrodite and Hephaestus. Together, we are strong enough to protect the Ghost Twin and Draco Malfoy."

Kody half-smiled. "Ghost Triplets," he corrected.

"What?!"

"Why do you think Hades suddenly needs another child protected? He protects Thanatos himself, we protect Rachel, but who guards the third?"

Kaden was shaking his head emphatically. "There's not a third child, there never was! I hate to break it to you, son of Athena," he mocked, "but you're wrong!"

Kody frowned thoughtfully. "I suggested to Hades that there be a third child, of course, but I was under the impression he never followed through. Now it appears he did." Kaden opened his mouth to argue again, but Kody continued. "Think, Kaden! A new child shows up needing protection. Rachel nearly kills said child approximately two minutes after meeting him for the first time, with minimal reason. Don't you recall why the gods are so nervous about the Ghost Twins? If they were to unite their fury and turn against the gods, the odds are statistically against Olympus." Kaden looked blank. "Olympus would crumble, Kaden." This Kaden understood.

"Furthermore, add in the fact that I myself suggested to Uncle that he create a child and hide them in the mortal world-where they could hide safely for many years under the gods' very noses-and the idea that by attending Hogwarts Draco's magic will change from mere mortal to, at the very least, powerful half-blood, it makes sense why Hades would need us guarding two people instead of one. Thanatos, Rachel, and Draco-presto! Ghost Triplets!"

Kaden stared at him, face drained of color. "Holy Hephaestus! You're right, of course. Our job just got a whole lot harder."

"Do not breathe a word of this conversation to anyone, not even Rachel. Draco's life will be in grave danger if the gods discover his existence." Kaden agreed. He and Kody clasped hands, then separated and headed back to their respective compartments, content to play the role of grudging enemies forced to live together once again.

…

Meeting Mr. Malfoy (Year Two)

Rachel Kaligras wandered the streets of Diagon Alley, bored. She could hear her brothers calling behind her, both yelling "slow down" but she wasn't about to listen. There, in Flourish and Blotts, Rachel had spotted a head of dark hair behind some tall man with blonde hair. Dark hair typically meant Harry Potter, and wherever Harry was there was also an adventure, which was wonderful news when one was as bored as Rachel.

Without paying attention to her brothers, she promptly barreled into Flourish and Blotts, and shoved the blonde man out of the way. He went flying against a rather large stack of books, and Rachel smiled in relief. Sure enough, the boy he was blocking was Harry, and he was with the Weasleys! "Hullo, Harry!" Rachel exclaimed enthusiastically, throwing her arms around him.

"Rachel," Harry replied, grinning like mad. "Glad to see you."

The blonde man Rachel had rudely shoved out of the way sputtered. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Who's that?" Rachel questioned the Weasley clan. "Looks sort of like Malfoy, the way he's got his hair and all. Have you seen Malfoy yet this year, Fred and George? His hair looks even stupider now, if that's even possible."

"Hey!" Rachel turned to see Draco Malfoy was staring at her with an indignant expression on his pinched face.

"Oh, here you are! I was just talking about you! So then I assume this man is your father. Pardon me, sir, but I was quite sure I had seen Harry and I wanted to say hello."

"Yes, I know you." Malfoy Senior glared at Rachel. "Draco's told me all about you."

"Ah, then you've probably heard nothing worth repeating. He and I are-well, we're not friends," Rachel said diplomatically.

"That's because I'd never lower myself to be friends with a filthy little mudblood like you." Draco spat.

The entirety of Flourish and Blotts got dead silent as they waited to see what would happen. "What did you just call me? Say it again, I dare you."

Draco's face twisted into a sneer, and he moved forward so he was directly in Rachel's face. "Filthy little Mudblood," he said enunciating each word clearly.

Rachel held her palm up in the bit of space between her and Malfoy, and licked her own hand. Then, with no further warning, she leaned forward and planted it on his cheek. "You've got mud on your face, you big disgrace" Rachel sang cheerfully.

"RACHEL LYDIA KALIGRAS!" In the silence following Rachel's song, Kody's voice was abnormally loud. He and Kaden had been standing outside Flourish and Blotts, but when they saw their sister lick her hand they automatically knew something bad was going to happen and entered the store. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Malfoy called me a Mudblood," Rachel reported.

"She knocked over my father and called my hair stupid!" Draco defended.

"You knocked over Mr. Malfoy? Did you apologize?"

"Yes."

"Good. Malfoy, you should apologize as well."

"I will not. You're a blood traitor, you don't have any power over me," Draco taunted.

Kody turned to Mr. Malfoy. "Control your son," he muttered, eyes flashing. Then he turned to his sister. "I want you outside. Now."

"Oh, no, let her stay." Kaden argued. "I want to see what else she could do. I mean, the bookstore's still standing, why don't we burn it down before leaving?"

"Kaden, Rachel, outside, now!" Kody pinched the bridge of his nose. "Sorry for interrupting your day, everyone," he called to the shop in general before leaving.

The Weasleys left behind him, and instantly Fred and George were at Rachel tugging her arms. "Come with us," they both said, leading her away.

Before Kody could argue, his hair was grabbed roughly and he was dragged into an alleyway. Fortunately for his abductor, the alley was dark, and Kody was shoved down it far enough that no one could walk by and happen upon him by accident.

"What are you doing here," a low voice snarled in his ear. "Have you come to take my son? You may not have him! I'm not ready to give him up yet!"

"What would I want with your whelp of a son, Malfoy?" Kody responded.

There was a pregnant pause for just an instant, but it was long enough for Kody to know he had correctly identified his attacker. "You know what you would want with him. You may not have him, not yet," Mr. Malfoy responded.

"I'm here for his protection at the moment."

"How soon until you take him?"

"That's not my call. That decision is made by someone with a lot more authority than I have."

"I mean it, Kaligras. If you take my son before I am ready I'll-"

"You'll what?" Kody challenged. "There is nothing you can do against the power of his father. Anyway, like I said, I'm not the one who makes that decision. When his father commands it, your son will be taken, and not a moment before."

"I'm not ready to lose him, not yet." Mr. Malfoy releases Kody's hair, and steps into the sunlight. He turns for just a moment, and Kody can see the emotion on his face which the proud man won't admit to. Love. Malfoy loves his son, and he would be heartbroken if Draco were taken from him. Then Malfoy disappears, and Kody sets off to find his siblings.

…


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two: Boggarts (Year Three)

Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher Remus Lupin quietly moves away from the dining hall after dinner, avoiding all of the giggling students gathered into groups, talking and whispering amongst themselves. He smiles at them fondly and recalls days when he too had not a care in the world-days when he and James Potter and Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew were amongst the students, grinning mischievously and plotting pranks.

His nostalgic mood is interrupted when he hears a young man's voice call, "Professor Lupin!"

Lupin turns to see Kody Kaligras hurrying toward him. Lupin smiles kindly at the boy, who reminds him of what he was like as a Hogwarts student. "What can I do for you, Kody?"

"The Weasley twins are spreading rumors that you will soon be teaching the third-years about boggarts."

Lupin finds it odd that the boy tracked him down after dinner to discuss his teaching curriculum, but decides the reason behind it is unimportant. Reaching his classroom, he holds the door open and ushers Kody in. "Yes, that's correct," Lupin confirms. He begins sorting through his papers as he waits for the seventh-year Ravenclaw standing before him to say something.

"I mean no disrespect, professor, but you cannot allow my sister to face her boggart."

Lupin arches one eyebrow and stares at the young man across the desk from him. The boy's eyes stare into his earnestly, and Lupin has to wonder why it would matter if the Kaligras girl faced her boggart.

"Surely you of all people understand why I cannot make exceptions for every student who is afraid to face their fears, Kody," he says kindly. "Rest assured, I will be nearby if your sister proves quite unable to handle her fears."

"That's not the issue, professor. Rachel's boggart would be quite personal-something she's not comfortable with people knowing. It's humiliating for her, and I will not allow my sister to be subjected to embarrassment due to a boggart. Please, professor. We both know you won't be letting Harry face his boggart, would it be so bad to exclude Rachel as well?" Apparently feeling it was best to leave with a rhetorical question for Lupin to ponder, Kody Kaligras spun on his heel and marched from the classroom. Later that week, Lupin replayed the Kaligras boy's plea as he taught his third-year students the spell for defeating a boggart. He was quite proud of them. Quiet Neville Longbottom had easily defeated his boggart, and Ronald Weasley had faced down the giant spider his boggart had transformed into with ease.

Suddenly, the boggart turned toward Harry Potter. Lupin started toward it, but the boggart had already transformed into a dementor and was now approaching the raven-haired boy quickly. Harry screamed and fell down to his knees, and Lupin was faced with the realization that Harry would be imagining his soul sucked from him in the dementor's kiss before Lupin could get there to rescue him.

Immediately when he thought these words, someone else stepped in front of the boggart. Rachel Kaligras raised both hands and screamed "No, back! I command you to get back from him!" The boggart/dementor appeared confused, before it morphed into something else. Lupin had enough time to realize that the magic radiating from the boggart now appeared a lot stronger than what it was before, until he smacked up against an invisible wall and was unable to move closer to her.

The boggart had transformed itself into a young handsome man. Rachel eyed him warily and drew her knife. The boggart chuckled. "Rachel, Rachel, Rachel," chided a deep male voice. "Drop the knife, sister. You know that is not your place."

Lupin realized the girl's face had gone white as she gripped the knife tighter. "You know nothing about my place."

"Your place is by my side, sister. You belong ruling the Underworld as my consort."

"Never!"

The man has circled closer to Rachel now, close enough that he could touch her. "Pity," the man says, and Lupin can almost hear genuine sadness in his voice. "Then I will show you your place," he growls, voice becoming deeper. "I will make you love me."

The man lunges for Rachel and shoves her against the wall. She shrieks and kicks him, but to no avail. As her classmates watch, Rachel's lips are crushed against the man's. Her arm comes up, and the man jumps back with a hiss, cradling his now bleeding arm as he stares at her and the knife in her hands in anger.

"Don't touch me," Rachel snarls.

The man begins to chuckle-a dark sound full of anger. "Lot of good that will do," he says. "Or have you forgotten what you've learned from Luke already? No decent man will want you since I've had my way with you. You're stuck with me."

As he advances toward her again, the classroom door is thrown open and two boys rush in. Lupin instantly recognizes Kody Kaligras and his younger brother, Kaden. They charge toward their sister, only to hit the invisible wall and bounce back. Kody instantly pulls out his wand and begins chanting spells to try and get around the wall.

The man halts his approach for just a moment to watch the boy, a smirk forming on his face. "It's no good, Kody Kaligras! Your sister's power is too strong for you to break through! "

A look of anger flashes across Kaden's face, and he shoves Kody out of the way and charges the wall at breakneck speed. He is repelled back with equal force, flying across the classroom.

"Like I said, her power is too strong. Through her fear, she's given her power to me, and I'm using it to lock you out. You can't rescue her; you have no choice but to watch her torment like everyone else."

Thus saying, mist came up and wrapped around both boy's arms, chaining them so that they couldn't move. They both struggle, but the man laughs and turns back to his sister. Rachel's face is grim as she grips her knife tighter.

"Ah, so you don't appreciate Thanatos, do you?" he asked. "Very well. Let's see how you do with another fear, shall we?" He morphs so that he is now a blonde-haired teenager, about college age. Somehow, Rachel has changed too; she's taller and appears older. Lupin is shocked-he's never seen a boggart able to do any of this before.

"Honey, I'm home!" the man calls out as he walks toward Rachel, smiling. Whereas the other man was dark, this man is light. He is happy, and genuinely in love with the girl standing before him.

"Luke!" Rachel yells. She runs and jumps into his arms, and he grins as he picks her up and whirls her in a circle. "I've missed you so much," she whispers quietly, hands locked around his neck.

"I've missed you too. How's my favorite girl?"

"I've got good news, Luke. I'm pregnant!"

"What?" The boy's voice cracks the air like a whip, fury evident in his tone. Rachel, however, misses the warning signs as she prattles on. "I'm pregnant, baby! I've been thinking, if the baby's a girl I'd really like to name her after my late sister-you know, Kody's twin who died when they were both eight-so I think Olivia would be nice. Then for a boy I was thinking-"

Rachel is suddenly cut off as the boy raises a hand and slaps her across the face. "You're what?" he demands.

Rachel is silent now, watching him with wary eyes. She's finally in tune with him, but it's much too late.

"Answer me!" he yells. "What did you say?"

"I'm pregnant," Rachel mutters, barely loud enough to be heard. But he hears her anyway.

"You stupid slut!" Rachel's mouth gapes for just a moment before she slams it shut. "I suppose you expect me to believe the child's mine?"

"The child is yours. It's our baby, Luke," Rachel's pleading now, but Luke either doesn't realize it or doesn't care.

"Don't lie to me Rachel," he bellows, bringing his hand up to slap her face again. This hit is harder, her entire head snaps to the side. "I haven't been home. It's not my baby, because I have been out working to recruit for Kronos."

"The child is your baby," Rachel snaps. "I haven't cheated on you, Luke. I would never do something like that."

"No! You snuck behind my back and slept around while I was out, didn't you? Admit it, you slut!" He advances until he's practically on top of her, grabbing her arm and throwing her into the wall. Rachel's face hits the wall and she bounces off, sliding to the ground.

Kody growls indignantly and struggles with the cuffs holding him captive, trying to go to his sister's aid. She needs him! But no matter what he does, he cannot get the bonds to loosen in the slightest.

"Luke, please," Rachel begs, trying to stand up. "You know I would never cheat on you. I love you."

"Well I don't love you," he responds, kicking her back down to the ground.

Rachel's hands cup protectively around her stomach. "Stop it! You're gonna hurt the baby!"

"So what?" the boy roars, kicking her stomach for good measure. "You think I care about your love child with some stranger?"

"This child is your child," Rachel responds. "Our child. Not an illicit love baby. I love you-my husband-not anyone else."

In response, he shoves her to the ground and kicks her. There is a loud popping which Kody recognizes as Rachel's leg snapping in half under the pressure of the kick. Rachel gives no indication of feeling it. "Get out of here before I kill you, slut," he orders tersely. "Leave right now."

Though she is hardly able to stand, Rachel staggers to her feet and limps away. Luke kicks her one last time for good measure, sending her sprawling across the shield. Kody is visibly struggling with his bonds, trying to free himself, but he's still unable to.

Suddenly, a weird tingling feeling crosses his body, and he is lying on the ground inside the shield. He is still unable to move, except for his eyes. He looks down at himself and sees his body is covered in blood. He knows instantly that if he were truly bleeding this much he would be dead.

Rachel seems to realize this too. She is on her feet again, mouth covered in horror as she stares at the blood seeping from Kody. Kaden, beside him, is bleeding too, and the boggart is showing her everyone she loves lying on the ground, bleeding out. Of course, this isn't her worst fear-them dying-it's that she was the one to kill them. Sure enough, as they watch blood begins to pool on her hands and stream down her arms.

Kody and Kaden watch helpless as their sister sinks to the ground and screams. Her eyes are blank as the horror of what she believes she has done hits her.

Watching, Lupin feels the hairs on his back rise. No human being should ever make the sound now issuing from Rachel Kaligras' mouth. His heart breaks as Rachel crawls over to her brother and pulls his head into her lap, whispering "I'm so sorry. Kody. Kody. What have I done? I'm so sorry. I didn't realize-didn't know-I'm so sorry. Oh Kody. I'm sorry."

Seeing his brother's head cradled in Rachel's lap makes Kaden's vision turn red with anger. How dare the boggart make his sister believe that she killed them? He feels the chains snap and grins in anticipation, only to have his anger grow as he realizes the boggart has changed the scene yet again.

This time, Rachel stands on the outside of the shield, too. Kaden stands and moves toward his sister, taking up residence at her elbow. Kody is on her other side. Both brothers are silent, but both know that whatever this next fear, Rachel will not be facing it alone.

A young man-perhaps seventeen or eighteen-kneels before another man. Though this second man is cloaked in black, Kaden can feel the power radiating off of him. The man stretches forth a soap-white arm and grasps the teen's forearm, extending the arm with the palm facing up. Without any warning he stabs his wand into the arm in front of him, muttering a spell quietly. Once the Dark Mark appears Kaden realizes they have, in essence, witnessed the Dark Lord marking someone to become a Death Eater.

"Rise!" the Dark Lord hisses, and Rachel, Kaden, and Kody draw in shocked breaths simultaneously as they stare at the newest Death Eater. Now that the shadows are not obscuring his face, it is obvious that the newly recruited teen is none other than Draco Malfoy.

"This is all your fault, you know."

Rachel jumps and whirls around to stare at the man who has appeared next to her. He stares at the shield with an expression of infinite sadness on his face. "You rejected him. You told him you would be there for him, and when he needed you, you weren't there for him. So he turned evil. You made him this way. This is what you do-you love and you destroy. But you can never have one without the other."

Rachel begins to shake her head, so the man continues. "Why do you think your adopted mother died? What about your adopted father? You loved them both, and you destroyed them. They died because you tried to do what you never could. You were never meant to love them. You know you do not have the capability to love, because everyone and everything which you love you destroy. Look at Luke. Look at Olivia. Look at this boy's future. Look at your parents, and their past. Luke's evil, Olivia's fatherless; you pushed this boy to a sociopathic leader. Your parents are dead, and it is all your fault."

Rachel draws a deep breath and stares into the older version of Draco's eyes. He seems to be encouraging her, lending her strength. So Rachel pivots so she is instead facing the man, her eyes boring into his soul.

"You're wrong, Apollo, and you're not even real. If this was actually you, you would never say these things to me because we both know they're not true. My parents died of cancer, not because I had the audacity to love in spite of my genes. I didn't push Luke to become evil-I tried to stop him when he began implementing our plans to take over Olympus. Olivia is fatherless because I had the strength to leave an abusive relationship, not because I don't love her. And I don't always destroy that which I love. Kody and Kaden are here with me right now. I adore them, and they're not dead or destroyed. I CAN love and not destroy. As for Draco, well, I will do everything possible to keep him off of this path. This will not be his future if I have anything to say about it. Now, be gone!"

Immediately the boggart, shield, and the elder version of Draco Malfoy vanish. Kody stares at Rachel in shock. "You okay?" he checks, touching her elbow.

"Fine. I'm really tired, though. I think I'll go to Gryffindor common room to catch up on sleep-that took a lot out of me."

Professor Lupin snapped out of the trance-like state he had gone into upon seeing the older version of one of his students accept the Dark Mark. "Class dismissed," he announced.

"Night, guys," Rachel says, smiling a little at her brothers. She knows they're panicking and likely to follow her unless she acts like she's okay. Kody frowns at her suspiciously, but in the end lets her go.

…

"All I'm saying is, Rachel Kaligras' boggart was really weird. I mean, I've never heard of a boggart change like that in all my life," Malfoy overheard Hannah Abbott saying to one of her Hufflepuff cohorts in the Great Hall. He had been standing behind a post waiting for Potter to come by to start a fight, but unfortunately Potter was nowhere to be found. Hannah giggled hysterically, causing Malfoy to roll his eyes. Hufflepuffs, he thought scathingly.

"What was it?" asked the girl-who-Malfoy-didn't-care-to-remember-her-name.

"Well, I didn't actually see them, but I heard the rumors. Nobody really understood a lot of them, but the last one was Malfoy receiving the Dark Mark. Then some guy shows up and starts saying about how Rachel loves and she destroys. Totally weird. They say she went ballistic on the guy, listing all this evidence of how he's wrong. If you ask me, her and Malfoy need to snog…"

Hannah's Hufflepuff compatriot sighs happily. "Could you imagine what it would be like to snog Draco Malfoy?"

Hannah makes a face. "Nasty. He's a Slytherin." Seeing her friend pout, she grins and says, "Alright, I'll pity you. I will mention that if Malfoy turns out anything like the version in Rachel's boggart as we get older he will be a handsome man."

The other girl giggles again, and the two walk away together. Draco frowned. He had been in Defense Against the Dark Arts class with the Gryffindors, so he had a better idea than what the Hufflepuffs did as to what Rachel's boggart looked like. He still didn't understand how the boggart was able to act the way it did, or what the boggarts actually meant. It had been disorienting to see the older version of him kneel before the Dark Lord and get branded like a piece of cattle, but his father had the Dark Mark so Draco figured if it came down to it he would take the Mark too. _Maybe that would be enough to make Father proud._ The end of that scenario had been even stranger. The odd man who showed up saying about how Rachel loves and destroys confused him; especially after the comment about how Rachel promised to be there for him, and she wasn't. Obviously, older Draco had some friends which younger Draco did not approve of. It was an odd concept to be sure. Understandably, after "The Train Incident" as it was termed by Kaden, Draco Malfoy sincerely hated Rachel Kaligras. He hated her more than he hated anyone, with the possible exception of Harry bloody Potter. As First Year progressed, he had found more reasons to hate her: she was a Gryffindor, he was a Slytherin; she was a Mudblood, he was a Pureblood raised to believe she was the dirt beneath his feet; she was raised to see herself as strong and independent, with a moral duty to protect the weak, while Draco believed it was his moral responsibility to prey upon the weak. Needless to say, they were constantly fighting. The idea that they could be friends, and that she might like him was surprising-although he was doubtlessly attractive-and he began trying to figure out how to use this to his advantage.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Sorry I haven't updated in so long guys! Here's the next two chapters! Enjoy (and let me know if you have any suggestions for this story)**

Chapter Three: The Phone Call

By Potions, Draco had not figured out an appropriate response to the revelation that Rachel Kaligras had a crush on him. So he continued acting like normal, which meant that they were fighting again. "Honestly, Malfoy, quit picking on poor Neville! Get a life outside of bullying people."

Draco rolls his eyes dramatically. "You use the term _people_ quite loosely. Anyway, how can you not laugh? This is the third cauldron he's blown up in as many days-it is pathetic!"

"You're pathetic! And maybe if you were nicer to him he wouldn't be so nervous!"

"Ha! It's not my fault he's afraid of his own shadow!"

Right at that moment Professor Snape billowed by. Glancing at Rachel, he stated, "Five points from Gryffindor."

Rachel stuck her tongue out at his retreating back. "Detention, Miss Kaligras," Snape said without even turning around. Rachel opened her mouth to respond but was cut off by a loud _dad dum! dad dum!_

"Here comes Jaws!" Rachel yelled. "I love this ringtone." She pulled an odd Muggle device out of her robes and glanced down at it. "You guys get great reception here," she commented before opening the device and holding it to her ear. "Hullo, Percy Jackson, cousin of mine!" Draco heard quiet muttering from the Muggle contraption. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN, ANNABETH'S MISSING?!" More quiet mutterings, followed by a sigh from Rachel. "All right. I'll go gather Kaden and Kody and call you back." Without waiting for a response she snapped the device closed and darted from the classroom.

She ran from the dungeons up into the main part of the castle. All the way to Professor McGonagall's classroom she sprinted. When she threw open the door she half-collapsed against the doorframe. 60 pairs of Fourth Year Slytherin and Hufflepuff eyes swiveled to stare at her, and Professor McGonagall was quiet as she stared at the girl who had just interrupted her class.

"Rachel!" Kaden exclaimed. He jumped up and hurried to her side. "What happened?" While catching her breath, she used sign language to say "Don't panic."

Once she finally was able to speak, she ordered, "Meet me in the Astronomy Tower in five minutes. Something's happened." Kaden nodded.

Rachel pushed herself to her feet and ran off again. "If you leave this classroom, it's detention for a week, Mr. Kaligras," Kaden heard Professor McGonagall call as he sprinted from the classroom. He simply waved one hand in acknowledgement, not breaking his stride as he hustled to the Astronomy Tower.

The next classroom door to slam open was that of Ancient Runes. Kody leapt from his desk and caught his sister as she sagged into his arms. He sat her on the desk, watched a moment to be sure she wouldn't collapse, and then transfigured his textbook into a goblet. "Aguamenti," he whispered, pointing his wand at the transfigured textbook, and the goblet filled with water. He handed it to Rachel and watched anxiously as she finished it. She gulped it eagerly, and then handed it to him with a quiet "Thanks."

He nodded and quickly transfigured the goblet back to his textbook. Once that was done, Rachel said, "We have to go to the Astronomy Tower."

Kody nodded in agreement. This wasn't quite what he was expecting when she burst into his classroom so obviously frazzled. The news that she had kissed Malfoy would have surprised him less than a random intrusion followed by an expressed desire to visit an abandoned tower. "Alright," he said compliantly. "We'll go as soon as class is over."

"No, now," Rachel argued.

"I can't miss this information. The NEWTS are coming up soon and-"

"Kody," Rachel interrupted. "Percy called. Annabeth's missing."

…

Once they were all gathered in the Astronomy Tower, Rachel pulled out her cell phone and called Percy. She put it on speakerphone so that they could all hear the phone ring. A few seconds later, they heard, "Hello?"

"What do you mean, my sister's missing?" Kody demanded. Rachel touched his arm to calm him. Annabeth was the sister he was closest to, and he didn't seem to be taking it well.

"I don't know! We were fighting a manticore and the next thing I knew she went on this thing's back, and it fell over a cliff, and we looked for her but she was gone and I get this feeling that she's not dead but I don't actually know for sure, it's just this strong feeling that she's not dead but if she's not then I don't know where she actually is," Percy rambled.

"She's not dead," Rachel replied confidently. "I would have seen it if she was."

"Oh yeah, I forgot about your seizures." Ever since Rachel was little she would always have a seizure if someone they knew was about to die. Accompanying the seizure would be a vision showing exactly how the person would die. When she would come out of it, she often had enough time to save the person. So she was certain Annabeth wasn't dead because she would've literally watched her die.

"Explain slower, please," Kaden requested. "I'm confused about what happened."

"We went up to Bar Harbor, Maine, to Westover Hall. We were told by Grover that there were two half-blood kids who were there."

"We?" Rachel questioned.

"Me, Annabeth, and Thalia," Percy clarified. "My mom drove us. Anyway, we got up there and there was this dance. We danced and then noticed that the half-blood kids were gone. Sorry, guess I'm getting ahead of myself again. Grover told us that there was a monster there watching the half-bloods too. So when we noticed the kids were gone we were obviously concerned. We went out to look for them and saw that the monster-a manticore- had them cornered. We battled, and Annabeth ended up on the manticore's back. Then," a quiet sob which everyone politely ignored "the manticore went over the cliff. We looked for Annabeth but couldn't find her. The manticore vanished, and Annabeth was gone too."

"Where are you now?" Rachel asked.

"We met up with Artemis' Hunters. We're back at the camp now."

"And the Half-bloods?" It was the first words that Kody had spoken since first demanding to know how Percy had lost his sister. "What happened to them?"

"They're here with me."

It was clear Kody was entering his son of Athena mode. "Any sign of who their parent might be?"

"None."

"At least you didn't compromise the whole mission. Do you have any idea where Annabeth is now?"

"Not at the moment. Just a really strong feeling, confirmed by your sister, that she's not dead."

"Alright, here's what we'll do. Rachel, Kaden, and I will Floo into Camp. Tell Dionysus to be prepared for us. Once we're there we'll split into search teams and head off to search for Annabeth. We'll search on Mount Olympus-well, we'll talk to Apollo and see if he knows where she might be-and we'll search the Underworld with the help of Thanatos. If anyone has any other ideas, I'd love to hear them."

"Okay," Percy says. "See you soon. Bye guys." The connection is cut off suddenly, and Kaden, Kody and Rachel are left staring there for a moment.

"Well, let's go," Kody says, and they jump up.

"Who's Annabeth?" a voice questions. Kody whips around and stares at Draco Malfoy, who has appeared in the Astronomy Tower. "Why does it matter she's gone? Who's Apollo and Artemis? Where's camp, and what is Mount Olympus?"

Kody glares at him. "Sod off, Malfoy. We don't have the time." He stomps off.

"Perhaps I didn't make myself clear. If you don't tell me, I'll have Filch alert Dumbledore that you and your siblings are trying to sneak out."

Kody freezes. "And if I tell you the answers to your questions?"

"I'll let you go without another word. No one will realize you're gone until enough time has passed that you can be there safely, because I won't alert anyone."

Kody spins around, staring daggers at Malfoy. "Swear it. Swear on the name of Salazar Slytherin that if I tell you what you want to know, to the best of my ability, you won't tell anyone where we've gone."

"I swear. On the name of Salazar I swear that if you tell me what I want to know, I won't tell anyone you are gone."

"Annabeth is my half-sister. She and I are very close. It matters that she's gone because it means she could have been taken prisoner by our enemies. Camp Half-Blood is located in New York. I can't answer your other questions…speaking of enemies, Rachel, has Luke contacted you recently?"

Rachel shakes her head.

"Okay. I know he used to like to tell you this stuff, back when you guys were-" he trails off awkwardly, not sure how to finish that statement. _Dating? Married? Partners in crime? When he abused you?_ He ponders. None seem appropriate.

"I don't know what he's doing anymore, fortunately."

"Fair enough. Let's go."

They heard shuffling footsteps, and the voice of Filch say, "Students out of class, Mrs. Norris? We'll find them and drag them back by their ears."

"Run!" Kaden whispers.

"No, wait! Stay here and stay quiet," Malfoy orders, and he descends the stairs of the Astronomy Tower with soft steps.

"Well what're you doing out of class?"

"I don't answer to you, Squib."

"Very well. I'll take you to your Head of House and we'll see what he has to say to you."

There's the sound of footsteps heading the opposite direction, then a loud "I'll walk myself, thank you, Squib. Wouldn't want you contaminating me with your filthy hands." They can't hear Filch's response.

"Thank Merlin for good friends," Kaden whispers emphatically. Kody signals to him and they hurry down the stairs. Filch and Malfoy are nowhere in sight. In fact, the Kaligras' do not cross them the entire time they travel from the Astronomy Tower to Dumbledore's office.

Kody strides confidently into Dumbledore's office. "Headmaster, we have an emergency at home which we must attend to. My sister has gone missing. We fear she's been kidnapped."

"Very well. Go, children." Just like that, Dumbledore steps aside from his fireplace to let them through. Kody picks up Floo Powder, yells "Camp Half-Blood" and vanishes.

"You next, Rachel. Don't worry, it's easy to Floo. All you have to do is say where you want to go clearly, then drop the powder."

Rachel picks out a bit of Floo Powder from the container beside the fireplace and steps bravely into the flames. "Camp Half-Blood," she says, words clear as a bell. She too disappears.

Kaden quickly follows. When he opens his eyes, he is standing close to a disgruntled Mr. D. "Oh look. Caleb just stepped out of my fireplace too."

"My name is Kaden."

"Whatever," Mr. D. said flippantly.

"We're here about my sister," Kody says.

"Far as I know, she's right beside you," he says, peering at Kaden again. Kaden isn't sure whether or not to take offense.

"My other sister, Annabeth Chase."

"Ah yes, Annabelle! Peter Johnson was just asking about her as well."

The door to the Big House slams open abruptly, and a teen girl with jet-black hair wearing a gothic "Death to Barbie" tee-shirt stepped in. She was followed by a boy with black hair and blue eyes. He was wearing a light blue tee-shirt and jeans. Trailing behind them is a tiny boy. He is wearing a bright yellow shirt and shuffling cards quietly.

"Kody, thank the gods you're here! We've been trying to find more about where Annabeth might've gone, but we're running low on ideas. Between the Athena cabin and us, we still have no ideas at all of where she could be."

"It's alright, Thalia," Kody comforts, going over to give her a hug. "We're here now. We're going to find her."

Kaden walks over and punches the boy companionably in the arm. "Hey Percy, let's go to the beach. We'll talk this over. Maybe with some new minds we can figure out something you guys didn't think of."

Thalia and Kody both nod. The four of them go to walk out the door, until Kody realizes Rachel isn't following. "Coming, Rachel?"

"In a second."

They head on down the path, and Rachel approaches the younger boy who entered behind Percy and Thalia. After entering the Big House he had flopped on the floor and ignored everything around him, content to shuffle his cards. Rachel squatted down to his level. "Hi. What'cha got there?"

"Mythomagic cards. I collect them," the boy says proudly. "See, here's one of the guy that was just in here." He pulls out the card and stares at it with adoration. Rachel is shocked to see a Greek statue with the word _Dionysus_ written beneath. "Everyone says he's really lame because his attack points are low. I've always liked him, though."

Rachel has no response to this. "Do you collect Mythomagic cards?" the boy asks, turning to her.

"No."

"Oh. My sister doesn't either."

Rachel's interest is piqued. "You have a sister?"

"She's with the Hunters now. She left me."

"Oh. Well, maybe we can be friends. I can be like your sister, if you want."

The boy stares up at her. "I think I'd like that."

She smiles. "Great. What's your name?"

"Nico Di Angelo."

Rachel puts out her hand to Nico to shake. He takes her hand and quickly drops it. "Ouch!" Rachel peers down at her hand. The moment their palms touched, heat radiated up and shocked her. Judging from Nico's reaction, the same thing happened to him. Curious, Rachel presses one finger timidly to Nico again. Nothing happens. She stretches out her palm and touches his. Nothing. Her brow furrows in confusion.

Finally, she decides not to worry about it. Whatever that was, it was just a fluke. "Okay, well, it was nice meeting you, Nico. I'm going to go meet up with my brothers now, but I'll see you soon."

"Okay," the boy affirms.

Rachel heads down the path toward the beach. Her brothers, Percy, and Thalia are sitting on the edge of the pier. Though it's January, Percy's feet are in the water. As Rachel approaches, she hears Percy saying, "Zoey had a dream saying Artemis was missing too. It makes me think my dream was right."

"Hold up, what did I miss? And Artemis is missing too?" questions Rachel as she sits on the pier, pulls off her shoes and socks and dangles her feet in the water.

"I had a dream last night. Annabeth was on this mountain, and she saw Luke holding up the sky. She went to him, and he told her that if she helped, they could hold the sky together. So she did, and he left like the jerk he is."

Rachel frowned. "Don't know why Annabeth would help him anyway," Percy mutters angrily. Rachel understands, though. Annabeth would help because, like Rachel, she kept hoping that if she cared enough, they would be able to redeem Luke. After all, Annabeth was his good friend, their good friend. She had been there when Rachel had left him too, hiding the- Rachel stops that thought in its tracks.

She feels a light pressure on her arm and turns to see Kody smiling a bit at her. "It does no good to dwell on the past, Rachel."

"I know. It's just hard. He wasn't always this evil."

"I'm confused," Kaden cuts in, addressing Percy. "You never mentioned Artemis in this dream."

"I was getting there," Percy says irritably. "Anyway, so after Luke left Annabeth holding the sky, then Artemis came-well, was taken prisoner, actually-and she took the sky for Annabeth. So quick summary-Artemis is currently holding the sky, Annabeth's prisoner, and Luke's a jerk." Kaden snorts at the last statement.

"Wait. I thought you said you didn't know where Annabeth was. Have you had another dream since then where she moved locations?" Kody asks.

"No. Why?"

"Then we know where she is!" Kody exclaimed cheerfully.

"We do?" Kaden says, looking over at his brother.

"Yes! Come on guys, let's go!" He yanks Thalia to her feet, then pulls Rachel, Kaden, and Percy up as well and drags them along the path enthusiastically.

"Where are we going?" Percy yells breathlessly as he's pulled along.

"To the Big House!"

"Why? We know for sure she's not there."

Kody rolls his eyes. "No, I never said she was."

"But-" Thalia begins.

"Going to the Big House will get us a quest, which is what we need to be allowed to go get her." He begins sprinting up the path again.

"So where is she?" Thalia and Percy demand simultaneously.

Kody grins. His windblown hair and wide, cheek-splitting smile make him look like a lunatic, but he doesn't care. They know where his sister is. They can find her, rescue her, bring her to camp where she is safe and make this imprisonment a bad memory. "Mount Tam," Kody responds.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four: Mount Tam

*One week later*

It's been seven days since they figured out where Annabeth was. Seven long days. It's been seven days since Kody asked to go on a quest to rescue his sister and was turned down. It's been five days since Percy Jackson snuck away from camp to go on the quest that was eventually granted. It's been four days since Rachel had her vision of Bianca di Angelo's death-which she still hasn't had the courage to mention to Nico.

She stares at Nico now, observing the way his eyes have big black bags beneath them. His hair's unbrushed and falling into his eyes. Without his sister he looks lost. Rachel feels like crying as she contemplates how much worse this will be once he finds out Bianca isn't coming back. Of course, she tries to console herself, he'll be fine. He can see her again. After all, he's a child of Hades just like her. That was the reason for the heat she felt the first time they had touched-it was an identifier their father implanted in all his children.

Beside her, Kody pushes his eggs sullenly around his plate. He's peeved that Thalia and Percy were allowed to go on the quest to rescue Annabeth while he was left behind. "They'll be fine," Rachel reassures him.

Kody merely grunts in response.

Rachel decides to try again. "You know they'll call if they need us."

Kaden smirks. "I still owe that ba****d a few broken bones. I was looking forward to going, too," he says, jumping into the conversation.

"Language," Kody reprimands dully. "And how many times have I told you not to let your anger get the best of you?"

"Please," Kaden laughs. "Look me in the eyes and tell me you don't have a desire to kill Luke in the most painful way possible."

"Of course I do. But that's besides the point. The point is that they're going to rescue my sister and they left me behind."

"You know it was nothing personal," Rachel offers. From the look on Kody's face, this did nothing to reassure him. Suddenly, a loud chiming splits the air. Kody's mouth morphs into a morbid half-grin as he stares down at his watch. (The watch itself was a gift from Kaden. It was a watch that is also a GPS, communication system-both messages and face-to-face in a format similar to Iris Messaging, tracker, etc. Kaden liked it so much he made himself and Rachel one as well. Of course, they realized that when Percy left he had apparently helped himself to Kaden's watch-although he did leave a note saying he would bring it back.)

Rachel stared at her watch, feeling Kaden's breath on her ear as he leans in to see. She angles her arm away from her body so they can both see the words coming through. "Zoey's down. We need help."

Kody's fingers flew rapidly over the mini keyboard, and a new message popped up on Rachel's watch. "Thought you'd never ask."

Without another word to anyone Kody vanished. "Let's go!" Kaden cheered, and he and Rachel vanished together, leaving a very confused Nico di Angelo at the table alone.

The moment Rachel's feet touched the soil of Mount Tam, her body rocked and she fell to the ground. She had just enough time to think _no, not again_ , before blacking out.

Kaden watched, panicked, as his sister went into a seizure. _Someone's gonna die_. Kody turned and came running over. "Back up!" he orders Kaden tersely. His arms gently cradle his sister's head, but otherwise he does nothing. Kaden raises his wand and begins throwing up mufflatio and disillusionment charms, to hide them from the sight of the people battling behind them. Rachel throws her head back and begins to scream. Kody grits his teeth, gently rubbing his sister's arms in an attempt to soothe her. Both boys know the gesture is useless-Rachel can't feel it, and there's nothing that will soothe watching someone you know die- but Kody does it anyway. The boys can hear the sound of the battle going on behind them, but they don't move or even turn around. Rachel is the priority right now.

Finally Rachel groans and her eyelids flutter. The shaking begins to reduce. After a few more seconds, she opens her eyes.

"Who was it?" Kaden voices the question that's on both boy's minds.

"Zoey. She's ultimately going to die from a wound fighting Atlas, but the dragon poison circulating through her body obviously isn't doing her any wonders."

"Of course," Kody breathes. "One will die by their father's hand." Then, abruptly changing topics, he questions, "Are you okay now?"

Rachel pulls herself to her feet. "Never better. Come on, boys, we've got a battle to fight."

Kaden quickly cancels the mufflatio and disillusionment charms. Kody and Kaden unsheathe their swords, while Rachel pulls out her trusty dagger and flips it into the air a few times. Then she pulls a bow and quiver full of arrows out of thin air and slings them over her back. They charge into battle.

Of course, the first thing Kody does is to jump in and aid Annabeth in holding up the sky. She is obviously struggling, near the brink of collapse, when he reaches her. Annabeth is not conscious of his presence enough to know it is her half-brother supporting her, but she knows someone is helping and appreciates it. In that moment, it could've been a huge spider supporting the burden of the sky and she would've been thankful.

Kaden runs straight for the manticore, and is rapidly knocked off his feet by the swinging tail. Undeterred, he jumps up again and jabs his sword into the monster's leg. The hideous creature growls and then swings his tail, releasing huge spikes. One impales Kaden, who pulls it out with a shrieked oath and charges once again. Again he is knocked down.

Watching, Kody can't help but roll his eyes. Kaden-when he is not impaired-is truly a glorious fighter. He is vicious and deadly, but he's also uncontrollable. His anger blinds him, and then he becomes very easy to defeat. Kody's only mentioned this approximately a hundred thousand times since the time they first began training together.

Kody turns from his misfortunate brother to find his sister. He finally locates her dancing around the edge of the cliff approaching Percy, who is switching thrusts with Luke. They parry back and forth, up and down, forward and backward, with neither side gaining the obvious advantage. As the boys approach, Rachel jumps into the fray, politely pushing Percy out of the way. He is happy to relinquish the fight for the moment and goes to Artemis to help release her from her captivity while the manticore is preoccupied.

Luke's handsome face twists into a snarl, distorting his scar from the dragon. He's throwing all of his weight into his thrusts, knocking Rachel around. Kody frowns. Luke has the height and weight advantage, but he taught Rachel…ah, there it is. Rachel begins using Luke's weight to his disadvantage, allowing him to throw himself forward before darting out of the way and slipping behind him. Luke whirls and the two begin their deadly dance anew.

Kody glances at Kaden again. He is back on his feet again and actually appears to be listening to Kody for once in his life. He's charging the manticore from the side, using his shield to block the deadly tail. As Kody watches he slashes his sword and cuts off the creature's tail. _Brilliant_ , Kody thinks.

A sudden shriek draws his attention back to Rachel. Somehow Luke has disarmed Rachel, and she has sunk to her knees. Luke stands above her, sword tight in his grasp as he stares down into Rachel's face. Kody begins to pray fervently to Aphrodite that Luke will recall his past love for Rachel and not kill her.

Luke's expression suddenly changes. The hardened war veteran willing to kill a previous love is gone, and he reaches down to pull Rachel to her feet. "Join me, Rachel. Join us in vanquishing the Olympians and showing them how wrong they were to reject us. We can make everything how it was supposed to be: the Olympians will be gone and you'll never have to fear for your life again, and we can be a family. Everything will be perfect. We can still have our happily ever after, Rachel. All you have to say is yes."

Kody realizes everything has gone quiet. It's as though the mountain itself is holding its breath, waiting for Rachel's answer. "I can't, Luke. We were wrong. Destruction is not a way to fix something that you love."

"Love? You don't love the Olympians. You can't spend a month-heck, you can't even spend a week with your father in the Underworld, despite his begging! And what about Thanatos? We both know you would love to put that boy in his place. I can offer you that. And imagine everyone submitting to us who's ever tried to kill you-imagine Zeus and Poseidon and Ares and Artemis and Athena all kneeling at our feet as we rule them together."

"I have no love for the Olympians, that's true" Rachel responds. "But showing them that I am everything that they feared I would be is not the way to convince them that they are wrong to try to kill me. I can't join you."

"I don't understand you!" Luke's face turns angry, and he takes a step toward her, fists raised. Kody's blood boils, but he can't move because he's trapped with Annabeth under the weight of the stupid sky. He knows that Luke had abused Rachel-although Rachel doesn't appear nervous about his raised fists. Instead she reaches out and places her hands overtop his.

"I don't love the Olympians, but I do love my friends. Think, Luke. If we fight the Olympians, we will be fighting against our friends and family. Do you want to go to war against Thalia? Annabeth? Kody? Kaden? Or what about your siblings from the Hermes cabin? Do you want to stare into their eyes as the life drains from theirs, knowing that you were the one who caused this? That's the future you're setting yourself up for!"

Luke's face is furious, and he slashes his sword toward her blindly. Somehow Percy is there, catching his blow on his own sword. The two boys battle anew, with Percy pushing Luke slowly but surely to the edge of the cliff. Luke pushes back, and then suddenly he darts to grab Percy's sword. Percy's reaction is immediate and reflexive-he brings his foot back and kicks Luke hard. Everyone watches in horror as Luke falls off the cliff.

Percy's face grows white and he peers over the edge. Kaden runs over, too, and this is the first time that Kody realizes that the manticore is gone. Kaden must have killed it. Kody hears Annabeth burst into tears beside him, and wishes for a free hand to wrap around her, but he's a bit busy holding up the sky. It irks him to be unable to help her.

"S**t" Kaden proclaims. "We're screwed." As he says the word, Atlas is somehow rolling toward Kody. He doesn't question it, simply drops the sky and grabs Annabeth, pulling her with him as them harmlessly tumble out of the way. Atlas' body catches the sky, as Kody knew it would, and he staggers to his feet under his burden.

Seeing nothing else that needs doing, Kody gently tugs Annabeth to the edge of the cliff. Together they stare in horror down at the army of monsters. Luke's crumpled body is in the center of them. "Kill them!" one monster hisses, and with a cry all the monsters begin to charge up the hill.

Kody is instantly assessing their chances of success. As of right now, the odds are approximately one in one hundred thousand and decreasing for every monster that gets closer up the mountain.

Kody's musing is interrupted by the sound of a large airplane. It's an old-fashioned one, Kody instantly recognizes it as a World War II era Sopwith Camel.

"Dad?" Annabeth cries, as her father begins shooting bullets at the monsters and they disintegrate on the spot. "Impossible," Rachel breathes. But Kody's eyes have caught the flash of celestial bronze, and he realizes that somehow the mortal has created bullets capable of defeating monsters.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five: Rachel's Reality

Back at Camp Half-Blood, Kody sits with his siblings in front of the fire of the Big House. Annabeth is wrapped in a blanket and has one hand in his. Kaden lounges comfortably on his shoulder, and Rachel sits cross-legged next to him. Thalia's eyes are red, and Kody reaches out an arm to her too. For some reason, Thalia has been hit hard by the death of her enemy Zoe.

Abruptly Rachel pulls away from Kaden and hisses. Kody sits bolt upright, hand flying to his sword as he waits to see what's happening.

"That's weird," Rachel states. "I thought I felt-but that's impossible because-"

She's interrupted by the sound of footsteps. The door opens and Percy walks in. "Rachel, can I have a minute please?"

She stands up and follows him out. Kaden follows them to the door but stops before following them out. The door shuts and Kaden instantly has his ear pressed to the door, listening for sounds of trouble.

"Percy, what is it?"

"Rachel, what I'm about to tell you needs to stay between the two of us." Rachel nods her consent, and he continues. "I've figured out who Nico di Angelo's godly parent is."

Rachel feels a rush of foreboding as he continues. Of course, she knows who Nico's parent is too-how could she not, after that electrical shock?-but to hear Percy say it will somehow confirm it, and Rachel isn't sure she wants that to happen. This will change everything.

"He's a son of Hades," Percy practically mouths.

Rachel frowns as one of her worst fears is confirmed. She had been hoping he was someone else's child so he wouldn't have to deal with the stigma of being a child of the Lord of the Dead. When Hades had first claimed her everyone had kept their distance, convinced that she was going to kill them. She had hoped Nico wouldn't have to deal with the same close-mindedness.

"Where is he?" Rachel questions.

Now Percy looks awkward. He stares at the ground and shuffles his feet, not meeting Rachel's eyes. "He-um-heranaway" Percy blurts. "He was upset that I let Bianca die and he blames me and so he just left, after splitting apart the ground." He gestures to a new chasm in the ground, one Rachel hadn't noticed before. She realizes this was probably the cause of the jolt of energy she had felt a few minutes prior.

"Ok," Rachel responds calmly. "I'll find him." She walks off toward the forest. Two seconds later she's tripping over a still form.

"Nico!" Rachel exclaims.

"Shhh!" the boy scolds, staring past Rachel. She turns to realize Percy has gone inside. "Good, he's gone."

"What're you doing lying on the forest floor?"

"Hiding."

"From what?"

"Do you always ask so many questions?"

Rachel ponders this momentarily. "Yes."

"I'm hiding from reality."

"May I join you?"

Nico looks shocked, then touched, though Rachel can tell he's trying to appear unaffected. "I guess."

Rachel settles herself onto the damp mossy ground next to him. She stays silent, waiting for Nico to talk. She isn't disappointed.

She hears him take a deep breath, then say, "So. I'm a child of Hades."

Rachel grunts in affirmation. Nico eyes her, seeming shocked again. "No running and screaming in terror?" he mocks.

"No."

"Are you really brave, or just really stupid?"

"A mixture of both, I believe." Rachel responds cheerfully.

"I could kill you where you sit," he threatens.

Rachel's still unaffected. "Could you?"

"No. Not at the moment. Maybe later, when I'm too far gone to care-when I'm the one slaughtering my friends and family."

"You will never have that kind of power," Rachel spits before she can think about it. "You never have to worry about that because you're not a Ghost Twin. They'll never expect you to be an assassin-never train you to be a mindless killer, so that you can be a death angel that they so desperately need. You'll never have people afraid of the amount of power that you will have-never have people who believe that you need to die because you have the capability to bring down Olympus. That will never be your reality."

"Is it yours?" Nico asks quietly.

"Yes."

"Tell me," Nico half-asks, half-orders. And suddenly, Rachel feels herself drawn to explain her life to her brother.

"I was born Rachel Lydia Kaligras to Lydia and Tom Kaligras. I had two older brothers as well, Kaden and Kody. I got along well with everyone-my parents adored me and my brothers would have killed anyone who threatened me. They fought a lot, but I always thought that was normal. My father died when I was five. He got in a fight with the wrong crowd, so they killed him. Three years later my mother died of cancer."

"I'm sorry," Nico responds. "We don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

"I want to," Rachel answers honestly. "After that Kody basically raised both Kaden and I. He did a brilliant job-especially considering how young he was at the time. We ran away from home and lived in a cave for months. This was the first time I remember monsters attacking. They would come in the day and in the night, and we would fight them off. It was constant-some days we had slept about half an hour total due to all the fighting."

"I remember the night I woke up to hearing Kody and Kaden talking about how dangerous this was. Kody kept saying 'We have to go to camp. It's our only hope.' Kaden disagreed, but we went anyway. We journeyed to Camp Half-Blood. When we got there I began to find out what you've learned-the gods are real, and they have children."

"I was unclaimed, so they began to test me to see what I was good in. They had me try my hand in archery and swordfighting, and they said I was the best they'd seen in a very long time. They weren't sure if it was because Kody and Kaden were my teachers-they were both some of the best fighters in history-or if it was because of my genetics."

"By the time I was ten everyone had pretty much expected that I would never be claimed. Even I had begun to accept that. After all, I had been here for six months and no one had claimed me yet. That was the day he showed up."

Her lip curls in disgust. "We had been playing capture-the-flag that day. We were told there was a new boy who would be playing, but not to act any differently. So I followed directions. I ran through the woods and happened to come across the flag. There was only one person guarding it, and we began to fight. He was a good fighter, stronger than anyone I had come across thus far. He was pretty much my equal. For some reason, a huge crowd began to gather, watching me and the stranger battle for the victory. Finally, I managed to slam his helmet off. Everyone gasped when they saw the stranger's identity, but I didn't understand why. I simply put my sword to his throat and demanded he hand me the flag. Surprisingly, he did. He plucked it from the ground and knelt, offering it to me. At the time I thought he was just being dramatic."

"For the rest of the day everyone avoided me like the plague. I couldn't understand why, after all, my teammates should have been happy at the least since I had won us the game. But they wouldn't talk to me either. Finally Kaden showed up at the Hermes cabin and told me to come to the Big House. He looked so serious-I don't remember ever seeing Kaden look that serious in all my life. Naturally, I was convinced he had learned he was going to die. We walked to the Big House in silence. Once we got there only Kody, the stranger from capture-the-flag, and an odd-looking man was there. Chiron and Mr. D. were nowhere around, which I found very strange."

"The boy from the game approached me. The older man was solemn, staring at me and making me feel very uncomfortable, but the boy looked genuinely happy to see me. He walked over and kissed me firmly on the lips, muttering 'My Queen' as he did so. I was shocked at his nerve, so I did the only thing I could think of to do-I slapped him. It was quite a good slap," Rachel remembers, grinning. "His entire head snapped to the side."

"The man with him began to laugh. He began talking nonsense about an experiment and results 'better than he ever could have fathomed.' I had no idea what he was talking about. Eventually they told me that this was my godly father, Hades, and the boy I had just punched was both my brother-my twin, in fact-and the man I was supposed to marry."

"You see, apparently when I was created, it was right before World War II broke out. My father had decided to create a child using DNA from all of the gods to see if this child would be able to restore the world after the catastrophe of World War I. The gods were in agreement and willingly donated their DNA. My father created my brother. However, he was too blood-thirsty. My father gave him the name Thanatos and made him his helper in ruling the Underworld. Fortunately, he had anticipated that something like this might happen and had split the DNA into two. At this point World War II broke out and my father had to stop his experiment. "

"Many years later, once he decided it was safe, he began to look for a suitable surrogate mother for his next child. He decided to use the woman whom Kody-his nephew, a son of Zeus and Athena, who had helped him with his experiment-was living. The woman also had a son from Aphrodite and Ares named Kaden. The two boys were constantly at each other's throats, attempting to kill each other because the children of Athena and Aphrodite hate each other very much. My father hoped that if the DNA had worked properly that I would be able to unite the two children. It worked better than he expected. Once I was born Kody and Kaden were commissioned to protect me, and they became brothers in every sense of the word. They were allies-they fought together, played together, lived together-all because of me. It was my father's crowning moment of joy."

"But of course Thanatos wasn't happy. He was convinced I was meant to be a killer like him. But I despised the Underworld, despised my father, and despised him. I preferred to be aboveground, living out my life like I had for the past ten years. This hurt my father, but he allowed it. Thanatos was significantly less understanding. He kidnapped me and kept me prisoner in the Underworld. He was convinced I could learn to love both him and his home, and he had very specific ideas about how to achieve his goals. One of them was to have me kill. I wouldn't, so he took over my brain and basically used me to wipe out an entire village. I was devastated. It was around this time that I became known to the other gods. They saw the damage that Thanatos and I were capable of when we were united and feared for Olympus. They set out to kill me. Kody, Kaden, and I fled-but we never could outrun the past."

Rachel turns so she is staring directly at Nico. "I guess the point of this story was that I do understand what you're going through. I understand what it's like to be the outcast-to have people whispering behind your back and terrified to death that you're going to kill them. I lived with that for the months after Thanatos came until the time when we ran away, and I've been living with it every time we come back to camp. You're always going to have the people who are afraid of you. But you're the one who makes the ultimate decision about who you're going to be. Choose to be good, choose not to kill. Make yourself an ally of them, and prove to them once and for all that they don't have to fear the children of Hades."

Thus said, Rachel stands up and returns to the Big House. She can hear Nico calling after her, but she ignores him. He's heard her story, now it's his turn to decide. She can only hope she's influenced him enough to keep him safe from Luke.

Once she enters the Big House, Kaden leans forward to touch her arm. He can tell she's upset, but she meets his eyes and smiles. "Let's go home," Rachel says. The two boys exchange glances, then nod. They make their rounds, hugging Annabeth and Thalia and Percy. Then they pick up Floo powder-kept by the fire just for them-and travel back to Hogwarts.


End file.
